Introduction: The Elephant in the (Class)room

I've been teaching graphic design for many years now. Sure, we
talk about messaging, composition and process—but there's a
question that looms heavy. Surprisingly, it's rarely asked: Will
graphic design be a satisfying career?

What can I say to those who ask? There's a glass half full
response and a glass half empty response.

When the glass is half full, I see that most of us really love
what we do. We become fast learners and are quite resilient. Our
field changes frequently, especially in terms of technology. We
keep up because we fear that our work will become stale or our
skills outdated. Our civilian (non-designer) friends think we have
it made: we get to be creative for a living.

Our civilian friends don't realize that the tough part is
being creative for a living. Creativity doesn't always happen on
demand. When the glass is half empty, I see that many of us are
tormented by procrastination and resent the “business” part of our
creativity. We question everything and are rarely sure that we are
doing our best work.

Most graphic designers create artifacts for a living. When we
reflect back, we see a trail of books, catalogues, brochures,
posters and logos. Is that all that represents our endless hours of
toil? Has graphic design been our life?

Some of us just crave recognition—validation that what we have
done is important. We designers reward each other with more
artifacts: certificates, books, plaques and Lucite circles, squares
and triangles. Again, is that all that represents our endless hours
of toil?

The Museum of Design Atlanta (MODA) celebrates AIGA's centennial year with the exhibition “AIGA 100: A Century of Design,” a collection of works documenting the organization’s long history and association with the century’s most influential designers.